Imaginary
by Sweetest-Sammy
Summary: Another of my Reid abuse fics. Pain and angst. If you don't like it then don't click. Spin off of Home Life, not necessary to have read it but they do complement each other.
1. Imaginary

_Ok, this one shot is a temporary solution to the problem of my big sister wanting to kill me right now. It's also to stop me being chased around my friends house in heels tomorrow night, very long story. –sigh- I hope you all enjoy it and REVIEW_

_Disclaimer: does anyone even read these things? If you do review and tell me, I'm interested (actually its just a ploy to get you to review) However I do not own the Covenant or any of its characters much as I might wish any and all of them were mine._

_I also do not own the song Imaginary by Evanescence though I commend them on an excellent song and Amy Lee on her amazing vocal range._

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_Swallowed up in the sound of my screaming_

_Cannot cease for the fear of silent nights_

_Oh how I long for the deep sleep dreaming_

_The goddess of imaginary light_

Reid thrashed against the imaginary bonds that held him in place in a desperate bid to lash out at his shadowy tormentors. None of them so much as flinched. They didn't even seem to notice his attempts. Their icy bonds gripped his arms as they watched him struggle. Finally he gave up and sank low in their grip. Then one of them would step behind him and pain would lash his back again. Causing him to arch his back, biting his tongue and doing his best not to scream, not to be weak. And he would begin to struggle again. He longed for the figure of light, which had saved him in dreams long ago. But that figure had disappeared, along with his father on the day of Reid's fourteenth birthday.

He remembered sitting in the rain at the park as all the others ran for cover. He just sat on the bench getting more and more wet as the colour ran from the streamers and into his clothes. But he didn't care. He was waiting for his dad to show up, looking out across the playing field for his fathers tall, broad figure. But he never came. They found his body late that night. It had run off the road in the rain and into a ditch, killing him instantly. A part of Reid had died as they carried his fathers closed coffin to his grave. The innocent part.

_In my field of paper flowers_

_And candied clouds of multiply_

_I lie inside myself for hours_

_And watch my purple sky fly over me_

After that his mother had remarried and life had gotten worse. When that happened Reid would lie alone in his room for hours replaying his favourite memories in his mind over and over again. Soon these glowing memories began to fade and, as the abuse got worse, he made up his own scenes. Even when he could barely remember his father he clung onto the last few shreds. He lived in his own little world when he was at home. Whenever his stepfather was particularly drunk and had started laying into him he would retreat into one of his dreams. He thought he couldn't be touched there.

But soon the dreams were tainted. The crack of a belt and the searing pain would forever add a bitter taste to the memory or dream. He wasn't even sure which was which anymore.

_I linger in the doorway_

_Our alarm clock screaming monsters _

_Calling my name_

_Let me stay_

When he was little and had a bad dream he would climb out of bed, careful not to touch the wood. It was an old family superstition, because wood burnt and burning was bad. He would make his way across his room on the carpet until he came to the hallway. Then he would stand there for what seemed like hours, mentally preparing himself. Then he would run down the hallway. Feet slipping, stumbling or balance determined not to trip. He would reach his parents room out of breath and terrified. But this was the real test. Because his parents room was always far darker than the rest of the hallway or his own room. So he would tiptoe in and creep across, desperate not to enrage any monsters hiding in the shadows.

He would make his way across the room in bursts, always running the last little way. Then he would jump up onto his parents bed and snuggle down between them. Safe and warm he would always be able to sleep. Of course by fourteen he was far too old for such a thing. But he still did it anyway. For a while after his father had died he had slept there every night. But he would never run down the hallway at night again. Never run to his guardian in terror because now suffered that terror at their hands every time he came home.

_Where the wind will whisper to me_

_Where the raindrops as there falling_

_Tell their story_

Reid woke up suddenly from another nightmare. He could hear the rain hitting the roof and feel tears trickling down his cheeks. He tried to stand and found that his legs would not support him. He sank quietly down against his bed, dragging the quilt with him. He half remembered staggering up the stairs after, and only after, his stepfather had drunk himself into a stupor.

Rain had always made him sad. Ever since his fourteenth birthday party. But it was more than that. It had rained the day his father died, the day they buried him, it had even rained on his mothers second wedding day not to mention when Chase tried to kill Caleb last year. Rain seemed to bring down the bad luck, which hounded Reid's life.

_If you need to leave the world you live in_

_Lay your head down and stay awake_

_Though you may not remember dreaming_

_Something waits for you to breath again_

Reid felt his breath leave him as a foot struck his ribs. He felt a crack. How easy it would be, he thought, to just hold this breath, just hold onto it and never let go. He spat some blood out on the carpet and the air came rushing back in. Maybe not that easy.

The foot hit again. Crap, something was broken. He'd used up all his strength healing himself last time, maybe that was why it was so bad this time, no way to deflect the blows. He couldn't hit out, couldn't expose the Covenant. Secrecy and silence had protected them for hundreds of years, using you powers to protect yourself would only lead to more punishment and eventually they would find something you couldn't protect yourself from.

The kicking had stopped. Reid allowed himself to relax. Maybe he was done.

Crack. Something hit him across the back. No, how stupid of him. How could anyone go to bed knowing they hadn't beaten their stepson into unconsciousness? It descended again and he felt the old wounds reopen as warm blood soaked his shirt.

_In my field of paper flowers_

_And candied clouds of multiply_

_I lie inside myself for hours_

_And watch my purple sky fly over me_

Reid felt darkness creep over his vision. He hoped it would be a happy dream this time but they seemed to be getting fewer and fewer. The shadowy figures seemed to come for him more now. They waited at the corners of his vision and he fought them for as long as possible. He didn't know if they represented the worsening of his life or the approaching ascension on his eighteenth birthday. To be honest he didn't really care. He just held them off for as long as he could. In his experience bad thing would happen to him whether he knew they were coming or not.

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_Awww…poor Reid. But at least Dean got her Reid angst. I hope you all liked it and if you did and you haven't already go and read Home Life which has more Reid angst in it. If Dean annoys me enough I might put up another one shot to appease her and help her write her debating speech. But for now review this one. Please?_

_Sammy_


	2. Aftermath

_Ok, well this was actually intended to be a one shot but this story popped into my head when someone asked for another chapter of Imaginary and I thought I'd put it up. Mainly because it's still a couple of hours until I can get my Harry Potter book and I'm bored. I also won't be updating Home Life until at least tomorrow because I like that fic and I'm not going to try and compete with the release of the new Harry Potter book. I'm also not updating until I get ten reviews for the chapter. Come on guys it was eleven for the last one (you have created a monster) now read and enjoy then review!_

_Disclaimer: hah, no one read my last one of these so I'm guessing no one will read this one, or at least no one read it who lived to tell the tale –creepy music- ok, spastic mood, not enough sleep because I was working on Home Life late into the night for you ingrate mwahahaha. Nope, sadly don't own them, if I did do you really think I'd be here?_

It had been a long weekend. Worse than usual. He hurt all over. He dragged himself out of bed, knowing another day 'playing truant' was not possible. He limped along the hallway, legs protesting at his weight, his ribs burning.

He made it into the bathroom at last, only having to ret against the wall a couple of times along the way. He didn't even bother to turn on the light not wanting to see how bad he looked just yet. He avoided his reflections eyes in the mirror and turned on the shower as hot as he could. He stood under it for what could have been hours. Letting it ease his tense muscles and wash away the cacked up blood. He leant his forehead against the wall and winced as the hot water poured down his back watching the water swirl down the hole with a pinkish tinge against the white tiles

Eventually he pulled himself out. He stood shivering in the darkness and cautiously approached the foggy mirror. He stretched out his hand to wipe away the mist obscuring his reflection, noting several bruises and a couple of cuts marring the pale skin. As he wiped it away he could feel the damp condensation on the glass. He stared at his reflection, wondering how on earth he was going to explain this one.

Both of his eyes were an amazing deep purple, his nose and lip were swollen. His legs were covered with a motley collection of bruises. He carefully turned around, flinching at every movement, to look at his back. It was a mess. His ribs were definitely swollen and he wondered that there was no damage to his spine. The marks across his back showed a fiery red and some of them still wept blood at the sight in the mirror.

He wrapped an old, bloodstained towel around himself and crept back to his room as quietly as possible, not wanting to wake the sleeping monster in his parent's room. In his room he kept a first aid kit. He had jokingly told Tyler, who had been there when he bought it, that it was a source of wonderful stories to tell girls. In fact Reid had never let a girl anywhere near his house. He wasn't going to be responsible for someone else's pain. He carefully pulled it out from under the bed and dug through the mess inside to find bandages. He had often had to use this box quickly and thus it wasn't in the best of states. Some of the substances in here were illegal but they had all saved Reid's life, social or actual, at one point or another. He finally found the bandages, wrapped around the antiseptic, and pulled the whole bundle out. He carefully tipped the antiseptic down his back. Twisting uncomfortably as the icy droplets got into his cuts, but he knew from experience that this pain was preferable to what would happen if he didn't use antiseptic. The first and last time his back had gotten infected had been when he was fifteen. Soon after, in a raging fever, he remembered being driven to the hospital. When he had woken up there was a nurse asking how he felt and telling him his parents were just desperate to see him.

He had never realised what a good actor his stepfather was. The man came charging into the room and nocked wrapped his arms around him, babbling about how worried he had been. And the nurse had taken it all in a cooed and they laughed together at how reckless bys could be.

When they got home his stepfather had beaten him senseless again and next birthday he got the strongest bottle of antiseptic that could be bought of the shelves. He got the message: it was a once off, don't let it happen again.

Carefully he wrapped bandages around his aching body, stopping up the bleeding and hiding the bruises all in one move. He deftly tied it at the front, knowing he had to make it look as if he had been to the doctors. He pulled on a shirt, biting back a groan as the required muscle movements pulled at his back. Dressed and ready he carefully snuck out of the house, aware he was lucky not to be caught and beaten this morning and having to make up an excuse as to why he was late. Forming bruises were always much harder to hide.

He walked down the driveway, jus enjoying the peaceful morning and turned at the bottom and began to walk slowly along the road, loosening his muscles. He knew Tyler would find him, no matter how far along the road he was. He got almost halfway to school before Tyler showed up. He said nothing but gave Reid a very pointed look as he opened the car door.

Reid climbed in and pulled the door shut, wincing as the movement pulled at his ribs.

They drove in silence for a while, Tyler obviously wanting to say something but hoping not to have to, eventually he apparently settled for something different.

"So what's your excuse this time?" he asked, his voice somewhat strange and his eyes focussed on the road ahead.

"Went out hunting, cougar jumped me." Reid grinned, "you should have seen it Ty, it was huge." Tyler sighed.

"That's the problem Reid," he apparently decided to take the lunge with whatever he had wanted to say before,

"I've never seen any of these things that do these things to you over the holidays and neither have Caleb or Pogue." Reid attempted another grin, aware that it was probably slipping.

"Well if you wanted to come hunting all you had to do was mention it." Tyler sighed again and shook his head, concentrating on the road. For the millionth time since his world became this painfiiled bubble he wondered if Tyler knew. As they travelled along the rough dirt track, every bump in the road jarring Reid's ribs and forcing his back into the seat, he decided it didn't matter. It didn't matter if Tyler knew because in the end there was nothing he could do. While the two Reid Garwin's who lived inside him were completely different people they agreed on one thing: his stepfather would never get near his friends.

_Ok, well that was the next chapter. Do you want another one for when they get to school? I'll probably keep this one based around various people's reactions to Reid's badly damaged but still gorgeous body and not give it really a proper plot like Home Life. So go read that as well. But first review this one…come on…you know you want to._

_Sammy_


	3. The Aftermath of Aftermath

_Ok well let me explain first off that the ret of the Covenant are not going to find out about Reid in this fic. This is a spin off of my other fic Home Life in which there is even more torture, a possibility of Reid dying and the others will find out about it. This one is set just before that fic and is a typical week for Reid showing what he generally goes through and answering a few questions which have been bugging me, such as why doesn't he use his powers to save himself: answer he's only so powerful until he ascends which he hasn't done yet. So while it is not necessary to read Home Life to understand this fic it would be advisable f you want to find out what happens to Reid in the end._

_Also, this story is not going to be slash. I love Reid and all the other boys too much to let them love each other. Thus the only relationships between the boys in this one are their friendships and the brotherly relationships I choose to believe are there._

_Disclaimer: This disclaimer is dedicated to animegurl715 for reading all the other ones and being the only one to tell me. –applauds-Don't worry it doesn't make you lame I do it too. Sadly I still have not acquired any or all of the members of the Covenant though it you find one wandering the streets feel free to notify me at once and I can give them a good home._

The boys arrived at school just as the bell rang and Tyler quickly jumped down out of the car. As he came around he saw Reid sliding down, a look of pain on his face. He carefully reached out and put a hand on Reid's back, trying to steady him while avoiding his 'cougar related injuries'. Reid gratefully put some of his weight on Tyler's arm held on tight to him as he jumped down. Tyler caught him as his legs gave out beneath him, hearing the stifled gasp of pain, and held him up for a second as Reid steadied himself.

Aaron walking past was no help.

"Too scared to let go of your boyfriend Garwin?" Tyler felt Reid stiffen and was prepared for it as Reid pushed him away. This time he only caught his friend's shoulder as he lost his balance again. He compensated slightly, prepared for Reid to turn and shoot some snappy reply back at Aaron. When he didn't Tyler let go, surprised at this change in Reid he carefully pulled the boys bag from the back of the car and followed an already distant Reid up to the dorms.

"No need to thank me." Tyler continued muttering under his breath as he pursued his friend's retreating back towards the school and up to the dorms.

By the time he got there Reid had unlocked the door and was lying on the bed, pretending to read, making it fairly obvious he didn't want to talk. Tyler walked over and tugged the magazine from his hands, turned It the right way up then placed it back in. He could see a slight blush creeping over his friend's cheeks as he once again hid behind the magazine, now the right way up.

Soon after, as they always did, Pogue and Caleb burst in. Sarah and Kate followed son after.

With Kate sitting on Pogue's lap being tickled and Sarah beside Caleb with his arm around her waist chattering away it was quite some time before Reid felt safe to put down his magazine. Soon after he did Caleb looked up and apparently noticed his friends battered appearance.

"Reid?" he asked, "Is that you? I can't tell under all the scars." Reid threw his head back and roared with laughter but as the others in the room followed suit Tyler watched Reid's eyes. They were dark, he was laughing and his whole body had relaxed but his eyes still held a fear beyond anything Tyler had ever seen anywhere else.

"Nah," Said Reid when he had finished with his charade of laughter, "a cougar jumped me while I was out hunting." Caleb shook his head and grinned at his friend. Tyler could tell he was glad Reid had not Used to fight off what was apparently a cougar.

Soon after both boys left the room. Pogue dragged out by Kate and off to god knows where and Caleb to take Sarah out to a movie.

Tyler sat for a while, watching Reid who had disappeared once again behind his magazine soon after his explanation for his injuries.

"Reid, I'm gonna go have a shower, ok?" Reid didn't stir. Tyler moved closer and lifted the magazine out of the way. Reid was asleep.

Tyler sighed and pulled a blanket over his friend, he could sleep in jeans.

Reid looked so innocent in his sleep. So vulnerable. The marks on his face stood out against his pale skin and Tyler wondered again how a cougar had managed this much damage. He shrugged it off. If Reid wanted to keep his secrets he could. Tyler was confident he would tell him when he needed to.

_Dumdumdum. Mwahahahaha. Are you afraid? I may do a couple more chapters, at least one I think depending n the reviews. Look out for an update on Home Life later today. It should be a very exciting chapter. Mwahahahaha. I think I had too much coffee this morning. Now review and tell me what you think._

_Sammy_


	4. Nightmares

_Yes, I am a bad person but you know what would motivate me to update faster? More reviews! Come on guys, you can do better. Go over to Night Life and even if you've already read the recent chapter then tell me what you thought of it! And if you haven't read it then go read it then review it if ou liked this! If you hated it then don't bother, my ego will shrink even further._

Reid lay in the dark. His eyelids felt incredibly heavy, dragging him down as the cold waters of exhaustion numbed the waves of pain, which washed over him in the silence. Evertytime the flow ebbed a little he could feel the pull of sleep, slowly dragging him out into the deeper waters of sleep. Yet he continued to fight, haulign his consiousness back towards the shore, never quite reaching reality but never getting dragged out to the point where he was no longer in control of his own mind.

But he was weary. The battle had been raging for many nights and after several hours his foes ceaseless onslaught was taking its toll on Reid's weakened body. Slowly he was dragged under and he was borne, barely resisting, into stormy seas.

_Rain fell against the windows. Outside the sky glowered on a darkened landscape and, as the six year old watched, the waters of the creek crept further up the lawn towards the house. A gentle hand descended on his shoulder._

"_Reid?" He turned and looked up into eyes the colour of a summer sky. The blonde man lowered himself onto the window-seat and joined his osn in contemplation of te rain._

"_You know, just because the world hates us doesn't mean the Garwin boys can't play a little baseball." A grin split the childs face as his fathers voice dropped to a conspiratorial whisper._

"_As long as we don't tell your mother I'm sure there's enough room in the hallway for us to swing a bat…_

Reid felt a wave of pan draggin him away from one of the few happy dreams that held him up like a piece of flotsam. But slowly it sank and with regret he let go of it and began the long journey back to consiousness with tears in his eyes. Alone.

_There you go. An update. I might update Night Life sometimes soon too. Stuff is just really hectic at the moment. I might swap to writing during the week and then updating on the weekends. Anyways, tell me what you thought of the dream? A little happiness for Reid. Awww. Tell me what you think and if you want more dreams. I can make them darker if you want. I can still torture Reid while he's at school. Just a reminder that if you want to see the boys find out about Reid's stepfather you're going to have to go read Home Life and Night Life. Also tell me what you think of the Acrtic Monkeys which is what I listened to while writing this on my brand new laptop! YAY! There's plenty of stuff you to talk about in reviews there so you have no excuse. Go on. Why are you still reading this?_


	5. Tyler's PoV

Ok, so I'm really, really sorry this has gone unupdated for so long

Ok, so I'm really, really sorry this has gone unupdated for so long. I do have a good excuse though. Well, excuses. About a month ago I had surgery and just as I was finally recovering from that exam block hit and to top that off I decided to go swimming at my friends party (in her freezing pool) and got a cold. Aren't I intelligent? But thankfully my cold has been short lived, I've recovered from the surgery and exam block is almost over. I only have one more exam to study for and it shouldn't be too hard as its in a subject that I actually enjoy and understand. So when I was checking my email I noticed that I had to PM's from the fabulous Susangel. So this chapter and anything else I write in my breaks tonight goes out to you hon.

Disclaim: not mine. I do own the sore neck and headful of stupid mathematical formulas however.

Tyler woke to Reid's thrashing on the other side of the dorm room. It was always like this. He always woke up to Reid's thrashing. Never to screams, never to sobs. The sobbing would come later but not the screaming, never the screaming. Reid was always eerily silent in the throes of his nightmares.

Once, Tyler had actually worked up the courage to go over to his friend's bed. Reid had been tossing and turning violently, limbs entangled in the sheets, face pale and lips pressed tightly together. He had lost his nerve then, not daring to reach into whatever void Reid was trapped in. He never could.

After a while Reid would always wake. That was when the sobbing would start and then Tyler would get up. When Reid had returned to the same world he would move over to his friends bed. He would rest his hand lightly on Reid's back, rubbing slowly in circles as the boy cried into his pillow. Eventually Reid's breathing would even out and Tyler would creep back over to his own bed. There he would curl up beneath the sheets and consider what a pitiful human being he was that he could never wake his friend from a nightmare. He never asked what Reid dreamed about either. He'd mentioned it once to Caleb once in passing and the older boy had brushed it off as something to do with ascension. Tyler didn't think so. Caleb wasn't there. He hadn't seen Reid gripped so tightly by something that he couldn't even scream.

Reid was brave. Often to the extent of being foolhardy. He was always up for a laugh or a dare and there was nothing Tyler could think of that scared him, even things that should. When other people got scared then Reid just got angry.

Suddenly the sounds from the other side of the room changed and Tyler pulled himself up, ready to comfort his friend. Halfway across the room he stopped. Reid wasn't sobbing. He wasn't even awake from what Tyler could hear. His breathing had evened out and he had relaxed. Tyler tiptoed his way across the remainder of the room and stood by his friend's bed. Reid was sleeping peacefully a slight smile gracing his features.

Tyler crept back to his own bed, puzzled but relieved that, for once, Reid seemed to be having pleasant dreams.

There we go. An update. I know it's short but this story is just going to stay as random stuff about Reid hiding the abuse and stuff. I'm not going to turn it into another story because I don't have the energy or the ideas that would require. However, in the sequel to Night Life the boys will deal with Reid's stepfather, finally, I promise. So until next break in my Legal Studies study, lol.

_Sammy_


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